New ASCD and McREL Book Presents Simple Approach to Maintaining Focus in the Classroom

Alexandria, VA (08/21/2013)—ASCD, the global leader in providing programs, products, and services that empower educators to support the success of each learner, is pleased to announce the release of The 12 Touchstones of Good Teaching: A Checklist for Staying Focused Every Day by McREL experts Bryan Goodwin and Elizabeth Ross Hubbell.

What if instead of trying to “fix” education with ever-expanding initiatives and mandates, we help K–12 teachers use checklists to focus on doing what research shows works?

Enter The 12 Touchstones of Good Teaching, a book that provides a daily checklist for educators to reference and ensure they’re doing what matters most in the classroom with each student, each and every day, to help them succeed.

The 12 universals of teaching found in this book apply across grade levels and subjects. They enable teachers to maintain an unwavering focus on the hallmarks of effective teaching in line with three essential imperatives:

Be demanding: Align teaching with high expectations for learning.
Be supportive: Provide a nurturing learning environment.
Be intentional: Know why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Decades of education research offer a great deal of insight into what works, and this book presents the hallmarks of effective instruction and connects them to practical, take-and-apply guidance.

“This new publication presents a straightforward approach to keeping focus on the essentials of teaching, especially when faced with complexities in the classroom,” said ASCD CEO and Executive Director Dr. Gene R. Carter. “With this resource, educators around the world can adopt a simple approach to consistently deliver effective instruction to all learners.”

About the Authors

Bryan Goodwin is chief operating officer at McREL, a Denver-based nonprofit education research and development organization. A former teacher and award-winning journalist, he writes a monthly research column for Educational Leadership magazine.

Elizabeth Ross Hubbell is a supervising principal consultant in the Center for Educator Effectiveness at McREL. She leads a team of consultants in Power Walkthrough software and Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works. She is also a coauthor of the second edition of the ASCD/McREL book Classroom Instruction That Works.

For more information about ASCD, visit www.ascd.org. To learn more about our books program or to read sample chapters from this and past publications, visit www.ascd.org/books.